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I woke up this morning after what had been perhaps the greatest couple days of my young, short life.

Just when I thought things couldn’t get any better, they did. I ran into Jonathan Capehart ’85 at our very first event! We had been expecting Chris Matthews, but after he canceled last minute, MSNBC scrambled to send someone in his place. It was a pleasant surprise to turn around at my breakfast table and see Jonathan Capehart sitting in Chris Matthews’ place. He recognized me from an event at the Newark Public Library a month earlier, and we quickly caught up after he spoke to a thoroughly impressed and amazed group of students and adults.

After breakfast, the group traveled to hear the director of the Society of the Cincinnati, Jack Warren, at the local Andersen House. This beautiful mansion has hosted this historical patriarchal society since its very beginning, and includes founding fathers such as George Washington and Alexander Hamilton amongst its ranks. We later reconvened to hear a speech from Ambassador Peter Wittig, the German Ambassador to the United States. It was refreshing to hear an international perspective on our country’s national affairs.

The program’s premier event occurred that afternoon in the Kennedy Caucus Room of the Russell Senate Building. All 104 delegates were ushered into this room, where every single senator was invited to come and meet their state’s students. So it was here that I and my fellow New Jersey delegate were able to meet Senator Booker and Senator Menendez within the span of an hour. Both Senators were very encouraging and praised our accomplishments thus far. Senator Booker even took a short selfie video with us!

This event marked the end of a long but enjoyable day. It was jam-packed with exciting events, individuals, and moments that I’ll cherish for a long time.